Best Online Learning Platforms in 2023

5 minutes

As we see college tuition skyrocketing to the most expensive frontier where they have ever been, online learning platforms are popping up to provide learners with flexible, affordable, and professional learning resources. Whether you belong to students, professionals, business owners, lifelong learners, or are picking up a new career skill, online education platforms democratize higher education and learning opportunities.

We compiled a list of the best online learning platforms to our opinion in 2023 where you can learn interestingly, effectively, and enjoyably.

# Coursera

Coursera is a hugely popular massive online learning provider. It was founded by Stanford University computer science professors Andrew Ng and Daphne Koller, accomplished academicians in their respective fields.

Partnering with more than 200 leading universities and companies, including Yale, Stanford, Google, IBM, and more, Coursera offers flexible, affordable, and job-relevant online education. There is a wide range of certifications, degrees, and short courses in multiple fields, authenticated by the credentials of respective institutions and universities that offer the courses.

Currently, more than three thousand courses in 13 languages are available on the platform with over 40 million learners who have accessed its courses so far. According to Forbes, Coursera is worth more than $1 billion which makes it the largest provider in the online education market.

The courses in Coursera are free but charged when taken for certification.

# Skillshare

Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes in business, design, lifestyle, technology, and more often taught by industry leaders, including some high-profile names. The platform carries more than 27k online video courses consisting of short, digestible lessons and a project which you can share with your peers to get feedback or collaborate with them.

The majority of Skillshare courses are focused on interaction rather than lecturing which makes it an interactive tool to sharpen skills. Though, contrary to Coursera, with Skillshare you don’t get the advantage of receiving a professional certificate.

You can start with a one-month free trial, and later be charged $32 per month or $168 annually. There are also special discounts available on the platform, like 50% off with a valid .edu email address.

# Udemy

Udemy is an online education platform with over 155k courses and 40 million students, self-described as “The leading global marketplace for learning and instruction”. It’s one of the most popular online learning platforms with 50k instructors who can create courses on their preferred topics. The disciplines vary greatly, covering 13 topics and a big number of sub-topics, including business, technology, health, performing arts, and many more. The platform is very frequently used by employers to encourage their employees to learn and improve their skills. Some huge companies like Adidas, Pinterest, and Eventbrite regularly train their workers on Udemy. Besides, the platform is popular among students who want to improve job-related skills, and experts eager to share their knowledge.

Courses on Udemy can be free or paid depending on the instructors who run the courses.

# edX

edX belongs to non-profit massive open online learning platforms founded by MIT and Harvard and aimed at offering free and affordable courses. It partners with over 90 worldwide universities (Yale, Stanford, Columbia, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and more) and leading corporations, NGOs, and non-profit organizations. The platform offers a wide range of free courses teaching everything from Java programming to science of happiness. While you can receive a certificate for course completion, you can also apply for special programs such as MicroBachelors and MicroMasters that cost a fraction of the price of traditional on-campus education. As soon as you’ve chosen a course to enroll in, you can choose between two options: to buy a verified certificate or audit the course for free. The certificate fee may vary from $40 to $160 depending on the course.

# LinkedIn Learning

Formerly known as Lynda, LinkedIn Learning is another example of popular online learning platforms that offer professional technology-related courses, creative learning, and business education. Coming as a premium service for Linkedin users, it offers more than 16k courses in 7 languages for beginners through to experts. A lot of organizations, companies, and universities benefit from high-quality courses available on the platform, giving their staff and students unlimited access to the courses. For instance, LinkedIn learning supports UN staff in enhancing their skills, knowledge, and competencies.

# MasterClass

Another option among top online learning platforms is Masterclass that educates students through video classes taught by celebrities and industry experts. Unlike other online learning platforms, MasterClass doesn’t focus on teaching hard skills but promotes other topics such as wellness, sports, cooking, business, etc. The videos are of great production value and provide a lot of practical tools and valuable insights into the experience of experts in the field. Furthermore, the application makes learning very easy and convenient, for instance, you can listen to the audio-only versions while on the go.

An annual MasterClass subscription costs $180 and gives access to all of the MasterClass’s offerings.

# Codecademy

Codecademy is an interactive online platform that teaches 12 programming languages, including Python, JavaScript, Java, PHP, Ruby, and others, as well as HTML, CSS, and jQuery library. Moreover, you can enroll in multiple courses to gain proficiency in Computer Science and Data Science, and become Front-End, Back-End, or Full-Stack Engineer. Codecademy offers an interactive learning environment where users can see their progress, compete with other learners, test their code, and receive feedback in real time.

Online education gives unlimited opportunities to learn what interests you, anytime you are available, and at an affordable price. Among different educational platforms, choose the one that corresponds to your aims and interests and try it by using a 30-day trial period. If you have already used any online learning platforms, share with us your experience in the comments below.

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This article was updated on January 31, 2023.

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